Snow and Cookies...perfect day!

First of all, I'd like to say that it SNOWED today! Not much for any of you northerners, but for a deep-southerner like myself, it totally counted!

Secondly my S.O. bought me a fabulous new Calphalon Cookie Sheet/Jelly Roll Pan. So to try it out, I decided to make some Valentines Day cookies to bring to work tonight...even though I work on VDay, figured I'd bring them today since it's going to be Mardi Gras madness down there tomorrow!

I LOVE baking, and I find that in general, I always have everything on hand to make sugar cookies so I can experiment with the recipes based on whatever else I have laying about!

Anyway, this is possible one of the easiest Sugar Cookie recipes ever. Not that any are complicated, but whatever. I was going to chill this dough and make rolled out cookies, but I didn't have time. So instead, I used some pink sugar that I found in the dollar section at Target a while ago (side note, great place to find seasonal sprinkles etc...I always find great Halloween stuff there for our Annual Drunken Pumpkin party...that's for another month though...) and I rolled balls of the dough in the sugar before I baked them.

First attempt: I did not "smush" the dough balls before I baked them.

Result: Puffy cookies

Second attempt: I "smushed" the dough balls.

Result: Cookies that sorta collapsed in the centers.

Conclusion: flatten cookies till they are about the same thickness as if they were rolled out.

Here's the recipe:

3/4 (1 & 1/2 sticks) butter softened...or microwaved for about 30 seconds

1 c. sugar

1 t. vanilla

1 egg

2 c. flour

1 1/2 t. baking powder

1/4 t. baking soda

pinch salt

Preheat over to 350.

Mix butter, sugar and vanilla with a mixer. Add in egg and beat well.

In a separate bowl blend flour, baking powder and soda and salt together.

Slowly add dry mixture to wet, blending well each time.

(I switched to the paddle on my stand mixer for this)

Roll each dough ball with your hands, flatten to about the same thickness as rolled cookies.

Coat in colored sugar if desired.

OR - Wrap in plastic wrap, refrigerate until firm, roll out and cut with cookie cutters.

Bake for about 10 minutes. Cookies will not change color or spread out much, so touch to determine doneness.

Let cool..or eat hot like I did and risk burning your tongue!!

Happy Valentines Day weekend everyone! Don't get too caught up in the consumerism, your sig-other would much prefer well thought out gestures from you!!